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Milk storage for the week

I went back to work this past weekend and I'm having some storage questions. I work 12 hr shifts on sat and sun. I feed before I leave then pump when I get there. Plus 2-3 more times during the shift. I store each pump in breast milk bags in a little cooler that I keep in our employee fridge. I pump 2 times a day during the week for bottles on sat. Then sat pumps for sun. Sundays pumps for the following sat and or use during week if I have to leave him with sitter. My questions are:

Is it ok to use ziplock bags instead of breast milk bags because they are cheaper? And can I freeze milk in them

Should I freeze some of this milk? Or can I keep all of it in the fridge?

Can I just add already cold milk to cold milk and just keep in a sealed (Tupperware 32oz) container in the fridge?

I am just not sure how to cycle the pumped milk. I defrosted too much milk this weekend expecting him to eat a bottle every 2 hrs(3oz) and he didn't eat that often so I had to throw a lot out b/c it was over 24 hrs old(that sucked throwing it out). He only had 5-6 bottles on sat and 6 bottles on sun

My son usually feeds every 2 hrs from me at home. He will go 3 hrs in the am with a nap. He breastfeeds 8-10 x/day. Sleeps most of the night. 7 hrs usually. He wants to eat at 5 am which is perfect before I leave. Then I feed him when I get home and again around 9-10 pm.

I just don't want to throw out milk anymore. I freeze in small portions 3 oz usually.

Re: Milk storage for the week

My only suggestion is to taste the milk, to see how long it's holding up in the refridgerator. If it is still good over the week for your baby to have when you are working on the next weekend, then you could keep it in the fridge. If not, you may need to stick it in the freezer until you are ready to use it, so it is more fresh. I buy the breastmilk storage bags in bulk, and find them to be reasonably priced from amazon or target. I wouldn't use a regular zip-lock. Small portions and tupperware should work out great! Yes, I add cold milk to cold milk when it's within 24 hrs of pumping, if you want to combine the same day that should be good. I hope that helps!

Re: Milk storage for the week

In your situation, what I would probably do is pump Sat, put it all on the fridge when you get home and let him drink as much as he's going to drink of that while you're working Sunday. Then, after your Sunday shift, maybe leave a bottle or two of fresh in the fridge for the week and freeze the rest. On Saturday, your caregiver defrosts one bag at a time as needed, starting with the oldest milk, so that you don't end up with a lot of extra milk defrosted and you keep your stash fresh. It doesn't take long to defrost a big of milk in a bowl of warm water. Storing milk in small portions is a good idea. You absolutely do not want to be throwing away milk! (btw... if you do find yourself with some extra defrosted milk, although the guidelines say to drink that within 24 hours, I probably would have stretched it a bit. Baby will let you know if the milk is bad.)

I've never tried freezing in a ziploc bag. I guess I would worry about leakage. The bags I use are somewhat thicker than a typical ziploc.